Thought on the creative process and everything that pertains to it. That means life in general

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Scooby Doo

The nice thing about children, for someone like me with a popular media fixation, is how they introduce you to new things. Molly has introduced me to the newest version of Scooby Doo. I never liked Scooby Doo in it's varied incarnations since it began in 1969 or whenever. It was one of those things where the idea was superior to the end product. Finally, however, someone has produced a version of Scooby Doo that actually works for me. "Shaggy and Scooby Doo get a clue", produced by Ruby Spears under the auspices of WB Animation, updates and redesigns the characters for the current decade. Both Shaggy and Scooby have been given real personalities that reach beyond the usual hungry coward scenarios. These two have finally been brought to the fore, recognising that the rest of the gang were really only supporting characters, given a fortune and a high tech mansion to operate out of and, while still scared of the villains they face they now stand up to them.The rest of the gang are occasional guest stars in the series with very agreeable updated designs. The colour and design are both flatter, more cartoonlike, rather than the very modelled and airbrushed look of previous series. The stories are also less cliched, the monster isn't old Mr McGinty, the caretaker and no one says, "I'd have got away with it if it wasn't for you meddling kids". The monster of the week is replaced with a regular recurring villain, Dr Phibes, who again is given more personality than any old time baddy. My daughter loves the show and it's something we can share rather than Fifi and the Flowertops or My Little Pony. The show is worth looking out for and if you don't have access to the Boomerang channel check out Youtube which has video of the excellent theme tune and part of the first episode.

Checking around the internet I found numerous posts decrying this new version of Scooby Doo. Strangely they all seemed to be from adults, who obviously aren't the intended audience, upset about someone playing with their childhood toys. My daughter and her friends on the otherhand love the show, and the older versions as well.